City seeing new business growth

The City of Walterboro is seeing incoming growth, as several new businesses and projects are now underway.

According to Hank Amundson, assistant city manager with the City of Walterboro, there are four projects now actively under construction. A new Urgent Care medical office business is under construction inside the city’s limits. Additionally, construction on the previously-announced Starbucks is underway. This national coffee café/restaurant chain is being built locally to house additional and side-by-side retail space; however, a definitive project for this space has not yet been announced.

Thirdly, Walterboro’s newest Coastal Kids dental practice is also construction. This is the city’s second medical office space now being built.

Lastly, Amundson says the city’s long-planned Discovery Center is also under construction.

This center will be the headquarters for the Walterboro Wildlife Sanctuary, a more than 800-acre natural swamp area. The sanctuary is used as a tourist attraction, where people can learn about the local environment and about species native to the area. The sanctuary is also used as an outdoor recreational space for local residents. The new center will house both static (non-living) and live animal exhibits, along with a commercial space and educational areas. The center will also house its own parking. There are plans for the city to build a new outdoor amphitheater space, as part of the Discovery Center. This center is being built with a combination of city funds, along with monies from an incoming USDA Grant. (See a related story in this issue). Walterboro City Council has previously purchased the center’s current site from Colleton County: the center will be built on the grounds of a former county parking lot, which is located across the Colleton County Courthouse and near the sanctuary’s main entrance.

Amundson says there are no other actual construction permits for the city that have been approved. However, there are additional renovation projects now underway. One such project is the ongoing expansion of the IGA Grocery Store, which is located near downtown Walterboro.

The second project is a new housing project for USC Salkehatchie. According to Amundson, the local college is restoring multiple apartments on the second floor of the Albert House, a former hotel in downtown Walterboro. (See a related story in this issue).

The downtown portion of the Albert House will also be restored for future retail space, said Amundson.